feminist news round-up 19.11.15

19 November 2015

Government appoints women to the ABC board
The Turnbull government has appointed two new women to the ABC board. The two businesswomen, Dr Kirsten Ferguson and Donny Walford, bring the total of women on the board to four, who sit alongside five men. They will assist in making the decision on a successor to current Managing Director Mark Scott next year.

Facebook creates ‘Safety Check’ for Nigeria after Paris backlashFacebook has brought back its ‘safety check’ option following bombings in Yola, Nigeria. Facebook had used the option in the wake of last weekend’s Paris attacks, but was widely criticised for not activating the option for other events such as a similarly timed attack in Beirut. In a post, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg explained that ‘a loss of human life anywhere is a tragedy‘, promising that the platform would do its best to help people in such situations more often.

Report: women will have wage equality in 118 yearsAccording to a report by the World Economic Forum, women can expect to have equal pay in 118 years’ time – not a moment too soon! The report also showed that progress in closing this gap has stagnated since the global financial crisis in 2008, and that, on average, women are currently being paid what men were in 2006.

Optus removes Arabic ads from Sydney shopping centreOptus has removed its advertising billboard in Arabic from a shopping centre in Sydney after shopper complaints on Facebook and alleged threats to staff. Some called the poster ‘in poor taste’ after last weekend’s Islamic State attacks in Paris, despite there also being posters in other languages including Chinese and Vietnamese.

Zara employees fired after refusing entry to a Muslim womanA Zara store in Paris has fired its security guard and store manager after a video went viral showing them refusing entry to a Muslim woman. The video, taped on Saturday, shows the guard asking the woman to remove her hijab. When she declined, the security guard refused her entry, raising serious questions about the restriction of civil rights for Muslims in the wake of the Paris attacks.